Within this mind

An Example of Religious Discrimination and Double Standards at University of Phoenix

Kinda Strange — Wed, 09 May 2012 21:59:49 +0000

At UoP, I’ve been told I’m going to hell. I’ve been told that I am in league with Satan. I have been told that I am an atheist solely because I have chosen to fill my head with lies.

These comments when unremarked by the moderators, even when reported.

I was suspended for pointing out there is a difference between wearing a shirt that says ‘I believe in Jesus’ and wearing a shirt that says ‘You are wasted if you don’t believe in Jesus’. I characterized the first as acceptable behavior for which I would give my full support, but the latter was unacceptable bullying behavior and it was completely right for school authorities to ask the student to change their shirt.

For that, I was considered to be ‘trolling’, and thus suspended. Note – I was not the one who brought up the shirt in the first place, and the topic of the thread was how to rectify bullying.

I am known on the forums to be an atheist.

Discrimination

Kinda Strange — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 00:20:12 +0000

It never fails to intrigue me how blatant discrimination can be, even on a college campus. Over and over again, there are threads in which Christians are allowed to say whatever they like, no matter how rude, obnoxious, or hostile to non-Christians it can be, including flat out calling people ‘abominations’.

Yet if an atheist participates in the discussion, then no matter how polite and well reasoned they respond, they are accused of ‘shoving opinions down throats’ or ‘persecuting Christians’. And if they cross the line, even a tiny it (no matter how many Christians in the thread are dancing past the line), they suffer consequences. Including banning, when far more egregious rule violations went unremarked.

It’s tiresome. It’s abusive.

And you know something else?

It’s also against the law. Unequal treatment is discrimination. Discrimination on the basis of religious views is illegal. Yes, even in Arizona. This is a school; it is subject to those laws. And some University of Phoenix ‘leaders’ and ‘facilitators’ need to remember that.

New Kids on the Block

Kinda Strange — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 18:08:51 +0000

Little boy is slightly older than little girl.

Gun Control

Kinda Strange — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 16:16:57 +0000

Frankly, I don’t think anyone needs to own an automatic weapon or a high-powered handgun. I think ‘assault rifles’ (I have issues with how they are classified rather than the concept, but define as – guns designed solely to kill people for the purpose of this discussion rather than ‘guns that look scary’ as they are more often defined) should not be owned by anyone outside of the military/police and even then should have some limitations and regulations of their usage.

Especially in the cities, I don’t think anyone needs to own a handgun whose bullets can travel through a person and a wall to kill another person. For certain police applications (such as SWAT), a higher powered gun can be authorized. A small handgun, such as mine, is more than sufficient for situation where needing a gun could arise. It can take out raccoons, rattlesnakes, coyotes, and if absolutely necessary and I had no other choice, a human being. It will not, however, turn anything into an unrecognizable greasy smear or travel through solid core oak doors to kill some poor person on the other side, as are the the things I hear folks brag about with their big handguns.

I also think anyone seeking to purchase a firearm must take a comprehensive safety course that does contain a bit of psychological evaluation (anyone talking about popping a cap in someone automatically fails, for starters). And I believe anyone owning a firearm must periodically show up at a shooting range to prove they know how to handle the gun or have their ownership rights terminated. I think it’s currently way to easy to get concealed carry and I think anyone who does want a concealed carry permit needs to be at the gun range every six months having their ability to handle a firearm questioned.

I think background checks are vital and I think hefty fines + jail time should be in the future of any gun seller who skimps on doing the background checks.

I think anyone firing their gun off into the air should serve a mandatory six month jail sentence with absolutely no possibility of time off for good behavior. And frankly, I’d be fine bringing back public stocks for that kind of stupid jackassery. If they do so in a public area or within city limits, I’m fine with charging them with attempted murder because to be blunt, that’s pretty much exactly what it is. Maybe a good flogging too?

But don’t mind me. I’m just a gun nut.

In defense of standing your ground

Kinda Strange — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 02:56:45 +0000

I own a gun and it serves a purpose. Namely – I keep livestock and occasionally we have to deal with stray dogs and raccoons attacking. I also have been known to hunt on occasion. When the gun is not holstered on my person with the safety on, it is unloaded and kept behind a lock in a location that is both out of reach and not immediately obvious. I prefer concealed carry because it prevents the sort of people who get stupid whenever they see a gun from, well, getting stupid.

I have also, unfortunately, been in a situation where I had to defend myself with a force intended to be lethal (regrettably it was not and the individual went on to attack at least two other women). In that case, it was not a gun I used, but I had repeatedly to deal with people asking ‘well couldn’t you have run?’ and making some asinine statements like ‘well he wasn’t going to kill you so you it wasn’t worth taking his life’ as though I was the bad guy for defending myself. My being successful in defending myself also meant they ‘couldn’t’ (read as – wouldn’t) charge him with a more serious crime and he only ended up getting six months in jail for ‘simple assault’.

I have also had to deal with a toxic family member and a stalker, and the police were pretty much entirely non-responsive in both situations. In both situations, I ended up having to break the law to defend myself and my property. Perhaps it would have been ruled self defense, but since in both cases I had the ability to flee and am the one who escalated (both times by physically throwing a person out of my house), in 29 states I would have been taking my chances.

I wish there was a way to keep unreasonable, stupid, and malevolent people from owning guns. And from voting. And from being out in public on a general basis. I support gun control laws, but I also think stand your ground laws serve a necessary purpose. They are just currently being twisted and abused to further a particular brand of stupid.

Gun safety courses should be required to own a gun, and instructors who see a student being a bit too gungho about owning a firearm should have the ability to fail the student. But we don’t live in a perfect world.